"Cannonball Baker", Darlington, Daytona, Charlotte, Talladega, Yarborough, Allison, Petty, Waltrip, Earnhardt. Colorful names in a colorful Sport.
But Nascar didn't start out that way. Founded in 1948 at Daytona Beach,Florida, Nascar was relatively unknown until the 70's when the Winston Cup Series,with major sponsorship from tobacco and beer companies , began to televise the races.
In 1979 the Daytona 500 was televised in its entirety on CBS.
With help from Cale Yarborough, Donnie and Bobby Allison, who engaged in the first nationally televised Nascar fistfight, and colorful Richard Petty who won the race, Nascar was off to a great start.
Winston Cup is now Nascar Sprint Cup with sponsorship from Nextel. The famous Busch Series is now the Nationwide Series, and Nascar even has a truck division-"NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series".
So, whatever your interest,as long as it involves gas fumes, loud noise, speed, and excitement, Nascar has something for you.
